


Guilt of Pursuit

by ToxxyMoxxy



Category: Pocket Monsters: Ruby & Sapphire & Emerald | Pokemon Ruby Sapphire Emerald Versions
Genre: Alternate Universe - Pacific Rim, M/M, Slight swearing, mentions of injury
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-01-11
Updated: 2015-01-11
Packaged: 2018-03-07 01:52:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,290
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3156542
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ToxxyMoxxy/pseuds/ToxxyMoxxy
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Running after memories is a dangerous thing, especially when you irritate your partner and almost blow up a building.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Guilt of Pursuit

**Author's Note:**

> A wonderful person on tumblr requested this, and since I needed something to do after my surgery, I went to the task. Not the best but what can you do in a post surgery haze, no?

“Would you like to tell me what the hell that was, Archibald?” 

Archie sighed to himself before looking up at his partner waltzing through the door. “What was what, Max?” “You chased the damn rabbit again.” His tanned jaw clenched up before heaving out a breath he didn't know he was holding, running his hand through his beard, scruffy from the frustration earlier. He knew it was coming as soon as they were strapped out of Obsidian Eagre's Conn-Pod and the red-head exasperatingly explained he was going to take a smoke. Hated that stress smoking, he did. 

“This is the second time it's happened, Archie. I'd thought you'd be more prepared after a good month of training in Kwoon. And the simulations were going so well, too.”

He thought the exact thing hours earlier. So many days after practiced drops in the simulator and training with Maxie preparing for another true go in the Jaeger, all futile.

“Look, Maxie, I'm sorry. Been hard with all the changes goin' on and-”

“And what?” The thinner one remarked irksomely, removing his glasses temporarily to irritatingly run his thin fingers through his hair. “You were about to set off the singularity beam trapped in there! You could have blown up the damn Shatterdome!”

“I'm well aware of that. Think I don't feel like shit enough already?”

Maxie heaved out a light sigh. “Maybe you just need more time. I know how hard it must be after that incident with Matt, but you really-”

**SLAM**

Before Archie had known it his hands curled into hardened fists slamming straight into the desk he was sitting at, brows furrowing. “You know, Maxie? Do you REALLY?” He could tell the red-head had jolted back slightly at his outburst. “I'm the only partner you've ever had in this damn thing. What you think you know isn't even close to what I've seen, what I've been through.”

Seeing his partner go wide-eyed, Archie tugged at his worn down bandanna he seemed to always wear. Maxie had uttered an apology, Archie shaking his head that it was all right even though he knew it was far from it feeling his face contort into a sickening frown.

“You weren't there, Maxie, I- Christ, it was so sudden, there was so much blood-”

The memory rushed over him as the quivering mention of blood left his lips. He slumped in his chair as the sounds of metal scraping metal and crackling electricity burned into his mind. Monstrous claws ripping into the back of the Jaeger, tearing at the skull of his best friend of so many years. Sick crimson gushing down over Matt's head and spine, watching his bro fall limply into the ocean.

The pungent smell of salt water and blood assaulted his nostrils as his friend hit the water, red turning into bright Kaiju blue flowing up on the tide onto the sand. Colors hitting the toes of a young tanned blue-eyed boy and his tiny black puppy dodging through litter and debris, until those dirty feet and paws slowly stopped at a gnarled up prosthetic leg, covered with all too familiar scribbles of Jaegers fighting Kaiju, flying jolly rogers behind them like they were the pirates of the new world. The sound of the young mutt whining and barking, young boy, young Archie, falling on scraped up knees holding the leg close like a washed up doll, shouting “Momma, Momma where are you, It's Papa, he's-”

Archie wasn't aware he was crying until he felt Maxie's arms wrap around him into a gentle hug, feeling the moistness on his shirt as he was pulled up out of the desk chair and into his chest.

“You were blabbing on about your R.A.B.I.T's again.” A quiet remark from Maxie; one he wasn't going to comment back at because one, he was right, and two, he just needed a damn break. Archie no longer held back and continued sniffling into the others turtleneck uncaring, and only semi-surprised when the other didn't protest and instead rolled smooth circles onto his back.

“M'sorry man, I just-”

“I know, Archie. You're fine.” Maxie's lips twitched slightly before muttering an apology. “I really shouldn't have pushed it when I got back here.”

“Nah, it's mine. You know I think too much. Dangerous stuff for being a pilot.” Archie had snorted between drying out sniffles. “Besides, you saw the whole thing earlier, didn't need t' bug you with stories you've already seen.”

The two stood there in silence for a few moments, unmoving, until Maxie had the nerve to ask something burning his mind.

“So, the leg, that was-”

“Old man's” Archie sighed out before returning to the desk. “Was a fisherman. Boating accident cost him his leg long before I was born. Out on the water when one of them damn Kaiju breeched. Ma and I looked the entire shoreline for a good week, hoping we'd find him. Fake leg's the only part of him we found.”

Archie reached up to his head, removing his bandanna to wipe the sweat and tear stains from his face before waving it slackly in his hand. “That was his too, the bandanna.” 

“Archie I'm- I'm so-” the red-headed one began to spout before Archie silenced him with a wave of his callused hand. “S'fine Maxie, no need to bumble over yourself.”

A few more moments of silence were had until Archie let out a low chuckle, odd for someone who had been in tears fifteen minutes ago. “Y'know I really used to think Kaiju were coolest things on the planet. Had a bunch of the merch before everything went to shit. Since they took Pop away, since seeing what damage they did to my Ma and I, fucking hated them ever since.”

“I think I can sympathize with you there.” Maxie had said wandering to Archie's desk again, stacking the scattered papers into neat piles. “Never liked Kaiju to begin with, and never lost anyone close like that. But I saw so much destruction around me, seeing my friends lose their families, their lives. I used to think if we could expand the land out, we could help everyone rebuild, get the lives we used to have back. With more land, there would be less places for Kaiju to hide. Maybe all of it would have stopped.”

Maxie exhaled and wiped his glasses on his sleeve before finishing. “It was foolish. So I joined the program so I could actually do something about it, instead of the childish notions I had.”

“Didn't think you could get so deep, Maxie.” Archie snarked, Maxie smacking him on the shoulder.

“It's about the same reason you joined up. And you cried for fifteen minutes into my shirt. Now it's time for mess, and I have to change.” The bespectacled red-head pushed passed throwing off his turtleneck and grabbing a new one from his dresser, before looking back Archie's way, almost certain he could feel the man's gaze burning on him.

“If you're coming you better wash that gunk and snot off your face. It's disgusting.” Maxie said as he deftly changed and left towards the mess hall, but not before patting a hand on Archie's shoulder. Archie had wiped his hand over his face, noting that Maxie was right about it being gross, before tying his bandanna back on his head and walking off to the sink.

As much as he felt like Maxie was like staring down and arguing with the sun sometimes, he was kind when it was needed. Archie knew they were assigned compatible for a reason, he had thought as she splashed his face with sink water, catching a slight smile in the mirror.


End file.
